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Rwanda
Chizz
Posts: 28,352
Beautiful country. Loads to see and do. Troubled history.
Anyone been? Or have advice to someone considering going?
Anyone been? Or have advice to someone considering going?
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Comments
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Yep, been to Kigali but didn't get to travel much. The genocide museum was very moving1
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'Hotel Rwanda' in my top 3 films. Don Cheadle is phenomenal in it.1
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They've invested tremendous amounts in IT infrastructure, have fibre optics going everywhere and have managed to create a government that is headed in the right direction.
Let's hope Roland doesn't take an interest!3 -
Went there about ten years ago - around ten years on from the genocide. Stayed in Kigali at the Milles Collines which was the real life Hotel Rwanda. Echo thoughts above re genocide museum - very moving. We then had a driver/guide who took us out to Volcanoes National Park where we spent two days visiting Mountain Gorillas - a superb / once in a lifetime experience, though numbers are strictly limited and I think the cost of the passes has increased substantially since then. The people were incredible - very, very welcoming and grateful to visitors for showing faith in their country, while some of their personal stories were beyond traumatic. I've travelled to a few other African countries (and lived in Kenya) but Rwanda is one of the few where the society does seem to be progressing with a real commitment to education and housing. The ruler is effectively a dictator, Paul Kagame, who led the Tutsi forces which ended the genocide. The French and Belgians do not like him, but he has demonstrated a real duty of care for the people of all persuasions in the country.
My visit was brief and a good while ago now, but I wouldn't hesitate to recommend.7 -
Well, there you go! He gets my vote.Weegie Addick said:Paul Kagame, who led the Tutsi forces which ended the genocide. The French and Belgians do not like him, but he has demonstrated a real duty of care for the people of all persuasions in the country.
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He won't. Belgians are not popular on Rwanda due to them letting the genocide happen.LoOkOuT said:They've invested tremendous amounts in IT infrastructure, have fibre optics going everywhere and have managed to create a government that is headed in the right direction.
Let's hope Roland doesn't take an interest!0 -
Aha a specialist on the matter ? May I remind you that in Western countries, armies carry out what politicians order them to do. In this case the UN were in charge. Heavy weapons were prohibited, so that was interesting ...Todds_right_hook said:
He won't. Belgians are not popular on Rwanda due to them letting the genocide happen.LoOkOuT said:They've invested tremendous amounts in IT infrastructure, have fibre optics going everywhere and have managed to create a government that is headed in the right direction.
Let's hope Roland doesn't take an interest!
I saw grown men with tears burn those clear blue UN berets ! We lost 10 good men to those savages. They were ordered to stand down and surrender all weapons. One guy was cut open with a machete and his intestines rolled out while he was still alive. Another para was covered with tattoos. They decided to remove them and he was skinned alive ...
So next time you post some crap, better check your facts. In case you have any arguments, you're always welcome to come and present them. I'll give the address:
3 Bn Para - Captain Gailly barracks - Kaliebaan 30- 2460 Kasterlee - Belgium0 -
Who's helped place this infrastructure in there , is it the Chinese ?LoOkOuT said:They've invested tremendous amounts in IT infrastructure, have fibre optics going everywhere and have managed to create a government that is headed in the right direction.
Let's hope Roland doesn't take an interest!
On the odd occasion I've been to poorer countries in the world the Chinese have their noses in there helping out with motives of their own be it "support" from these countries or minerals0 -
Apparently, Kenya is the largest investor in the financial sector, and China and Turkey in infrastructure. I'd be testing those routers for taps and Chinese IP addresses!0
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Is there an all day full English and what's the cabaret like in the evenings?1
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Have a read of the book Shaking Hands with the Devil by Romeo Dallaire, who was the guy in charge of the NATO operation there. Horrific stuff and nobody comes out of it with credit. There was Rwandan on the NATO committee preventing any form of action despite the obvious conflict of interest. Both sides massacred the other, though we only hear one side0
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From April to July 1994, members of the Hutu ethnic majority in the east-central African nation of Rwanda murdered as many as 800,000 people, mostly of the Tutsi minority. Begun by extreme Hutu nationalists in the capital of Kigali, the genocide spread throughout the country with staggering speed and brutality, as ordinary citizens were incited by local officials and the Hutu Power government to take up arms against their neighbors. By the time the Tutsi-led Rwandese Patriotic Front gained control of the country through a military offensive in early July, hundreds of thousands of Rwandans were dead and many more displaced from their homes. The RPF victory created 2 million more refugees (mainly Hutus) from Rwanda, exacerbating what had already become a full-blown humanitarian crisis.0
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Not to mention that the hutu interahamwe death squads continued to commit atrocities in the Congo, which had enough of its own problems.0
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I think he just posted a fact, us British are not universally popular amongst all our former colonies.skywalker said:
Aha a specialist on the matter ? May I remind you that in Western countries, armies carry out what politicians order them to do. In this case the UN were in charge. Heavy weapons were prohibited, so that was interesting ...Todds_right_hook said:
He won't. Belgians are not popular on Rwanda due to them letting the genocide happen.LoOkOuT said:They've invested tremendous amounts in IT infrastructure, have fibre optics going everywhere and have managed to create a government that is headed in the right direction.
Let's hope Roland doesn't take an interest!
I saw grown men with tears burn those clear blue UN berets ! We lost 10 good men to those savages. They were ordered to stand down and surrender all weapons. One guy was cut open with a machete and his intestines rolled out while he was still alive. Another para was covered with tattoos. They decided to remove them and he was skinned alive ...
So next time you post some crap, better check your facts. In case you have any arguments, you're always welcome to come and present them. I'll give the address:
3 Bn Para - Captain Gailly barracks - Kaliebaan 30- 2460 Kasterlee - Belgium
The real tragedy here was the world let it happen and did very little to stop it once it began. After the Second World War the UN said they would allow genocide to happen again but they did. Just like elsewhere in the world, they have.
Shame, beautiful country and certainly not population made up entirely of savages.
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So does anyone have advice for people considering travelling to Rwanda?0
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No mountain gorillas.0
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The Belgium government did not back and finance the hutu's for years? Why has the teaching of the belgium language now been banned from schools and replaced with English?skywalker said:
Aha a specialist on the matter ? May I remind you that in Western countries, armies carry out what politicians order them to do. In this case the UN were in charge. Heavy weapons were prohibited, so that was interesting ...Todds_right_hook said:
He won't. Belgians are not popular on Rwanda due to them letting the genocide happen.LoOkOuT said:They've invested tremendous amounts in IT infrastructure, have fibre optics going everywhere and have managed to create a government that is headed in the right direction.
Let's hope Roland doesn't take an interest!
I saw grown men with tears burn those clear blue UN berets ! We lost 10 good men to those savages. They were ordered to stand down and surrender all weapons. One guy was cut open with a machete and his intestines rolled out while he was still alive. Another para was covered with tattoos. They decided to remove them and he was skinned alive ...
So next time you post some crap, better check your facts. In case you have any arguments, you're always welcome to come and present them. I'll give the address:
3 Bn Para - Captain Gailly barracks - Kaliebaan 30- 2460 Kasterlee - Belgium
I'm no expert but I have spent approx 6 months working in the country, understanding the culture and talking to people. If you want to talk about it pal, maybe fly to Kigali and speak to anyone over the age of 40 and they will explain what they think of the Belgium and French governments of the time1 -
Gone a bit off topic, eh? haha. Have you been to Africa/East Africa before?Chizz said:So does anyone have advice for people considering travelling to Rwanda?
I've not been to Rwanda, but spent six weeks in Malawi last summer and the best transferable advice I can give is to learn a few words of the local language, even if just hello/thank you etc. I'm sure many locals that you may interact with will know a few phrases of English, but I found being able to greet people in their local language often changed the atmosphere of the conversation from nervous to overwhelmingly welcoming. Many Malawians admire those from the West, but with that comes a degree of anxiety, something which can quickly be solved with a simple Hello and showing that you don't think you're 'above' getting involved in local cultures.
I would love to go back to East Africa, Rwanda and Tanzania in particular, so would love to here any advice if you do make the trip!3 -
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1. I'm not your pal, thanks ...Todds_right_hook said:
The Belgium government did not back and finance the hutu's for years? Why has the teaching of the belgium language now been banned from schools and replaced with English?skywalker said:
Aha a specialist on the matter ? May I remind you that in Western countries, armies carry out what politicians order them to do. In this case the UN were in charge. Heavy weapons were prohibited, so that was interesting ...Todds_right_hook said:
He won't. Belgians are not popular on Rwanda due to them letting the genocide happen.LoOkOuT said:They've invested tremendous amounts in IT infrastructure, have fibre optics going everywhere and have managed to create a government that is headed in the right direction.
Let's hope Roland doesn't take an interest!
I saw grown men with tears burn those clear blue UN berets ! We lost 10 good men to those savages. They were ordered to stand down and surrender all weapons. One guy was cut open with a machete and his intestines rolled out while he was still alive. Another para was covered with tattoos. They decided to remove them and he was skinned alive ...
So next time you post some crap, better check your facts. In case you have any arguments, you're always welcome to come and present them. I'll give the address:
3 Bn Para - Captain Gailly barracks - Kaliebaan 30- 2460 Kasterlee - Belgium
I'm no expert but I have spent approx 6 months working in the country, understanding the culture and talking to people. If you want to talk about it pal, maybe fly to Kigali and speak to anyone over the age of 40 and they will explain what they think of the Belgium and French governments of the time
2. Belgium language ?
3. YOU said "... them letting the genocide happen" It was United Nations that had the lead ... Belgium is not a permanent member of the Security Council, but I guess everyone in Rwanda has knowledge of that fact ? I don't think so ...
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Gawd Blimey! Happy Easter you two!skywalker said:
1. I'm not your pal, thanks ...Todds_right_hook said:
The Belgium government did not back and finance the hutu's for years? Why has the teaching of the belgium language now been banned from schools and replaced with English?skywalker said:
Aha a specialist on the matter ? May I remind you that in Western countries, armies carry out what politicians order them to do. In this case the UN were in charge. Heavy weapons were prohibited, so that was interesting ...Todds_right_hook said:
He won't. Belgians are not popular on Rwanda due to them letting the genocide happen.LoOkOuT said:They've invested tremendous amounts in IT infrastructure, have fibre optics going everywhere and have managed to create a government that is headed in the right direction.
Let's hope Roland doesn't take an interest!
I saw grown men with tears burn those clear blue UN berets ! We lost 10 good men to those savages. They were ordered to stand down and surrender all weapons. One guy was cut open with a machete and his intestines rolled out while he was still alive. Another para was covered with tattoos. They decided to remove them and he was skinned alive ...
So next time you post some crap, better check your facts. In case you have any arguments, you're always welcome to come and present them. I'll give the address:
3 Bn Para - Captain Gailly barracks - Kaliebaan 30- 2460 Kasterlee - Belgium
I'm no expert but I have spent approx 6 months working in the country, understanding the culture and talking to people. If you want to talk about it pal, maybe fly to Kigali and speak to anyone over the age of 40 and they will explain what they think of the Belgium and French governments of the time
2. Belgium language ?
3. YOU said "... them letting the genocide happen" It was United Nations that had the lead ... Belgium is not a permanent member of the Security Council, but I guess everyone in Rwanda has knowledge of that fact ? I don't think so ...4 -
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Hey, those Otters will give you a nasty nip if angered - just ask Terry Nutkins!Baldybonce said:0 -
I think the upshot is it's a beautiful country on the up. You'll find the people warm and welcoming and you'll have no trouble with Skyping your friends or family back home, or using Tinder to get to know the locals due to the Chinese infrastructure.Chizz said:So does anyone have advice for people considering travelling to Rwanda?
Just don't mention Roland, Katrien, Karel, or Jose, or skywalker, Jean Claude Van Damme or any other ordinary Belgian.
And if anyone finds out you're Charlton, make sure you have a CARD badge on you.
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